Think Outside the Box This Mother’s Day

There are few holidays that stack up against Mother’s Day in terms of measuring love and appreciation. Both children and adults alike take a moment to shower their mothers and grandmothers with affection and gratitude during this special time of year. This year, the National Retail Federation estimates that American shoppers will break records leading up to Mother’s Day, spending an average of $172.63 per shopper on mom.1

While some moms will receive heartfelt thank you notes made from crayons and macaroni, a substantial number will receive gifts purchased online. Using the 1010data Ecom Insights panel of more than 5 million shoppers, we analyzed online shopper behavior to determine the most popular gifts during this special occasion. If 2014 sales are any indication of what will happen this year, Jewelry will likely be the clear category leader, beating out almost every other traditional gifting category including Candy, Fragrances, Flowers, and Edible Gifts. Between April and May 2014, Jewelry saw a 12% spike in units sold.

Though Jewelry is traditionally the one category that shoppers will spend the most on during Mother’s Day, a deeper analysis of the Jewelry category reveals that once Mother’s Day passes, Jewelry will under index in units sold until the holidays roll around. During the summer and fall, especially, Jewelry sees a large dip in units sold.

When comparing indexed category sales of jewelry, perfume, and candy, obvious gifting occasions emerge across the year. Around the holidays, the three categories seem to be purchased at a similar volume relative to their yearly average, but disperse as the year progresses. Fragrance exhibits earlier purchasing patterns than both jewelry and candy across most of the major holidays suggesting that fragrance commands earlier shopper consideration.